Tenevus Stromheart
Born in Rockvale, Arathi Highlands, to Ivhal and Helyena Stromheart, Tenevus was brought into Azeroth unlike most others, being the youngest of three brothers of the noble family of 'Stromheart', once called 'Strom'varr' in their native tongue. : Duke of Rockvale, Exemplar of the Church and Chancellor of the Silver Hand, Tenevus strives for peace and unity of his comrades and the continued sanity of himself as well as his wife, Rennali Sunwhisper, and his extended family. Life as a child and the art of diplomacy : Growing up the son of his well-known and influential father, Ivhal Stromheart, the Duke of Rockvale, Tenevus was always learning his father's craft, seeing the elder lord at what he did best. Procurring peace through words. Light: Gift or Curse? : During his toddler years, when his brothers were off sparring or studying, he was simply sitting and meditating on his interest in the world. Always curious as to the mysteries that surrounded him and the reasoning for what some called: The Holy Light. -At the time, there were clerics that were able to manipulate a weak form of divine magic to mend wounds and aid the sick, they were preachers and scholars and this interested Tenevus. His senses always would tingle at the touch of other life, his hair usually standing upon end as his skin would buzz with the same Holy Light that the preachers had in their possession. : It was not until he lost control of his rage after protecting a young girl from being bullied from a few young boys, unleashing scalding rays of caustic Light to sear their flesh, did he fear his potential, reverting his methods to a calculated and calm sense, always keeping his rage in check. For he feared what may have come from his rage as his years progressed. To this day, he carries that cloud of self-doubt. Interest in Alchemy Tenevus was never a fighter like his brother Brynash, nor was he a skilled practitioner of the arcane arts like his second eldest brother Valar. He was always tinkering with herbs and plant-life, totting himself around the curtails of the shamanistic brotherhood, The Men of the Harvest, always baffled at their control of nature and the farming seasons as well as the alchemical nature of the herbs that he and his mentors would collect. : His father was never too keen on Tenevus' attachment to the shamans of Rockvale and frequently tried to loop him into his eldest brother's activities as the Captain of the Rockvale Cavaliers, an elite horse-mounted military force. Tenevus seemed to excel at the prospect, but never really took enough ambiton for his skills to be fruitfull. Instead, he worked on alchemical potions and elixirs to aid the horses in their performace, enhancing the strength and stamina of even some of the most stalwart of steeds. : By the age of ten, he had already had a sizable collection of potions and writings on said potions that made most of the rest of his kin and their's pale in comparison. His father, unwilling to see one of his sons become what he joshingly prodded as a 'Fairy Boy', took Tenevus up into his wing, showing him the less physical side of his work. Diplomacy. The Lords of Arathor : Ivhal was summoned, with Tenevus, to go on a diplomatic mission to the other regions of the Arathi Highlands to rally support for Rockvale, as they had been suffering countless loss at the hands of the troll tribes pushing from the north into Rockvale's northern town of Balgrad. Tenevus learned quickly, watching his father woo the other lords, some lesser, some far greater. He reveled in his father's compassion with his fellows and subordinates and his endless patience with those that were stubborn in their ways. After nearly a year away from Rockvale, of constant diplomacy and councils with the other lords, Ivhal was able to manage a considerable amount of supporters to give aid to Rockvale, at the trade of supplies and the legendary assistance of the Rockvale Cavaliers, had the need arrisen. Tenevus met with many famous men and women of Arathor, even meeting and dinning with the iconic family of Arathor: The Trollbanes, both his and their families having rich history as stalwart allies to each other in the Troll Wars. The Young Knight, Diplomat, and Lover Heart for the Quel'dorei : Several years after the fighting in Balgrad had subsided and the peace of Rockvale returned once more, Tenevus had reached the ripe age of sixteen. Already having a seat on his father's court, he was well-known as being a bold and daring (and overly charming to some), but always a proponant to peaceful resolution, something he and his father shared that many of the younger diplomats of the court did not. : His father saw him fit to lead his own diplomatic mission to Quel'dorei lands of Quel'thalas. He had been there before as a very young child, but had only scant memories of the majestic lands. Accepting the offer, he and a handful of Cavaliers headed north through the Hinterlands and then through Lordaeron and into the High Elven Kingdom. : At first, his diplomacy mission seemed to fail. The xenophobic elves hardly had need for the humans and their 'paltry' attempts at unity, but Tenevus was persistent and did not hold back as to let such crucial allies slip through his fingers. -In the coming months after his failed attempts, he took up apprenticeship under Master Battle-Cleric, Nelaron Dawnfire, after the elf had seen his powers of the Light at work. : Nelaron took great interest in Tenevus, seeing the sheer raw and caustic nature of his Light powers. He and Tenevus worked hard to expose his gift and keep it under control so that he could learn, in time, to wield it in battle. The concept to him and his comrades in Arathi was completely foreign at the time. : In addition to his training with Nelaron, he began to court his daughter Elia Dawnfire. The two of them were practically inseperable, only removing themselves from each other for their respective duties. They were both very skilled in alchemy and worked on many wonderous projects together. Their unity, while by some was seen as disgusting, was something of inspiration to many of the progressionist elves that inhabited southern Quel'thalas, gaining Tenevus and The Kingdom of Stromgarde great favor with the elves. Knighthood and Heartbreak : After returning to Rockvale (Ivalon, the capital to be specific) Tenevus was heralded by his success as a political hero. His father, growing old and slightly ill pledging the lordship to Tenevus (should Brynash fail to uphold the mantle with honor.) : For the following years after his Quel'dorei exposure, he maintained his ties with Elia, sneaking out frequently, tossing aside his duty for her love. The next five years were much the same; Tenevus would travel through Rockvale and the rest of Arathi and secure allies and unify the lords, also learning how to take his martial combat more seriously. : On Tenevus' twenty-first birthday, he was sent to Stromgarde to train to become a Knight of Strom, as was tradition for all men of the Stromheart line. Honoring his family heritage, he postponed his alchemical work with his elven lover and went off to Strom, the nation's capital. : His skills aside, he was well worthy to be knighted and soon was given the rank of Sergeant of the Knights of Strom. Battle for Stromgarde : Nearly a year later, word came to Strom informing the King and his subordinants of an impending troll incursion upon the city. Weeks of tireless fighting were spent by both sides, but in the end, the humans came out victorious, charging against the heathenous trolls with their King at the forefront weilding the legendary family blade of Trol'kalar. : Word rang out that the ceaseless number of trolls came from the far east, the location of Rockvale. Reports indicated that there had been no word from Rockvale prior, during or even after the assault on the Arathian city. -Suspecting the worse, Tenevus fled to Rockvale, only the confirm his concerns. Rockvale in Flames : The trolls had cut their path starting at Balgard and slicing through the rest of Rockvale, charring their way through Midland, Ivalon and Firjorn Forest. The Rockvale Cavaliers did a fine job a capping the troll surge from the northern mountains in The Hinterlands, allowing for Tenevus and his knights to slaughter the trolls all the way back to Ivalon. Nearly half of the port city was in flames, bodies of trolls and humans scattered across the ground...and one he knew. Elia. Arcane Transfusion : she would outlive her soon-to-be husband, continued the work, hoping that her fiance may see the error in his mortality. : Upon Elia's death, while she laid among the rubble of burning Rockvale and Tenevus held her in his arms, she unsheathed a dagger that had been imbued with her alchemical substances, and stapped his right hand,instantly fusing with Tenevus' being the caustic arcane liquid, the wound on his hand, forever glowing with the faint smell and aura of arcane. He was made immortal (or so he thought), cursed and betrayed. His love, Elia, spoke words to him upon his death, words that meant much and that he carries with him: The Age of Seclusion The years following the destruction of Ivalon and half of Rockvale weighed heavily upon Tenevus. Angered at his fellow Lords for hardly aiding in Rockvale's efforts to rebuild and the lack of assistance in regards to keeping the trolls at bay in the first place, caused Tenevus to influence his aging father to seal off their region (save for church tithe and Kingly taxes) from the rest of Arathi. Now infused with his Arcane Transfusion, his aging process all but ceased, leaving on the scar as a reminder. Over the next 80 years, he spent it, with the recovering Rockvale, nestled queitly behind the Yagarr Mountains and padded by the fertile seas on the eastern coast. Both the Orcish Horde -and- the Undead Scourge were at the mercy of the formittable mountains, only a small handful of both slipping past, and what did was lost in the lumbering Firjorn Forests and ravaged by the worgenous wolves there. The Plague of Time Naturally, as Tenevus grew in years, so too did his family. His brother was first to die on the field of battle, as was his charge. Soon after, his mother who died in her sleep. His brother Valar vanished during the start of the First war, his arcane powers keeping him nearly as youthful as Tenevus, his status is unknown. All that was left was Tenevus, his father and his young sister that had just been given birth too before her mother's death. Rockvale, despite its hardships and reclusive state, managed to keep itself in decent standing with its internal borders and almost seemed to thrive on the bountiful resources that poured from the land. Tenevus because Deputy Duke after his brother Valar left, placing him next in line for the title of Duke. Lord Tenevus Stromheart, Duke of Rockvale A few years passed and Tenevus held several successes and even less complete military blunders where his trust in a wayward traveller from Alterac, Yanden, was allegedly sent as a diplomat for Lord Perenold. Yanden orchestrated in tricking Tenevus into outfitting his soldiers with cursed weapons, that when used, took over their minds and forced them to slaughter each other. Before Yanden could be apprehended, he vanished, leaving only Tenevus with the reprecussions of Yanden's witchery. After several years of repairing the fences that had been torn down surrounding the trust of his countrymen, his father passed away, leaving him with the noble title of 'Duke' of all of Rockvale, but it was not soon after that the duty of the Alliance called once again. The King's Men, the Lord's Hammer Not long after Tenevus was given the mantle of his father was he greeted by another diplomat, this time from Stormwind. Wary at first, Tenevus slowly warmed to him, welcoming him into Strom'varr Keep where the herald from Stormwind informed him of the goings on pertaining to the Cataclysm initiated by Deathwing and the needs of the King Wrynn to send whatever forces and aid Lords of the north could muster. Without little hesitation, and longing for some time away from his people that had become complacent in their little, secured haven, he left his nephew Faldren Stromheart as Lord-Regent in his place while he offered to travel south to Stormwind with a handful of the best Rockvale Cavaliers. Lord Montclair and the First Regiment of the Stormwind Army After he had arrived and met with the Court of Nobles of Stormwind discussing his arrangements and their needs of him, he was given a small embassy in Stormwind's Mage District where he would work on his papers and the like, dealing with aiding the Lords of Stormwind with their noble duties and the like. It was not until he heard the military recruitment criers that woke him from his mundane daze. Out of merely curiousity and the need to aid the men of the Alliance once more as he did when he was young, he enlisted as a Battle-Cleric, much like his mentor, Nelaron Dawnfire. Not surprisingly, he rose in rank, and eventually was given the rank of 'Knight-Lieutenant' under the Brotherhood of the Horse, amusingly the order that Anduin Lothar created, a man of legend that Tenevus had met when the fabled warrior was but a boy. Several campaigns in Stranglethorn Vale, and Duskwood securred him with enough favor where Lord Montclair himself entrusted a daring campaign to him, the quelling of the Blackrock Orcs in The Burning Steppes. When preparing the men and women in Redridge, he met a fellow Light-wielder. A spark of his own ignited at the sight of the the Quel'dorei, a feeling that had not graced his heart for nearly eighty years. Rennali Sunwhisper. He managed to wrangle both the Churc h's knights and the Dwarven Vanguard under Thane Thanror to aid in the assault upon the Mountain of Blackrock itself. They liberated the fortress and soon after, the nextstage in Tenevus' swiftly growing career took flight. The Silver Hand Council At some point during his place as Lieutenant in the men's finest, he approached Marshal Montclair with an innovating and refreshing idea to gather the anointed Knights of the Silver Hand, with an array of representatives from different locations and organizations so that they might reorganize and collaborate together to being unity to their frangmented, autonomous order. With the Marshal's and the King's permission, he set out to gather those interested in the Silver Hand Council that he was calling for, managing to wrangle nearly five or more organizations from the start. A few representatives including Lord Naevius Bellorum, a heated rival of Tenevus and ex-Scarlet Chaplain, Lady Elaine Barrancas, of the Order of the Reliquary, Thane Thanror of the Dwarven Vanguard and Sir Cartres Portiave, Champion of the Silver Hand and Major of the League of Lordaeron. Time and Tenevus' diplomatic history managed to keep the Council in check over the course of well over a year, taking in new and inviting ideas for the council and incorperating many fringe groups to the council chamber. -He relished the council, his divine and loving project, knowing that despite what political nonsense that would come of it, it to be all worth it if even one positive would be derived from the gathering of knights. The Fall of the Council Despite the council's long running success and glory, many attributes such as falty democracy, allowment of non-knight members, and a derailed forum of discussion saw to the council's end when Tenevus decided the forum had grown too lavish and extreme against the true virtue of the Light and he stepped down as Chancellor, and publicly disbanded the council. Regardless of this, a few fringe groups decided to continue the tradion; though Tenevus, seeing how it was no different than the warped image he had set out to stray away from in regards to the council, likening it to 'The Bastard Council' and never looked back, for his attentions were needed elsewhere. The Path of Virtue Despite being a paladin ordained in Trollbane Hall years prior, and his current miltary service (at the time), his efforts as Chancellor of the Silver Hand Council caught the eye of the church, who had been looking for suitable leaders to train their wayward knights and squires to glory and virtue. Much to his distaste at first, Tenevus had his military services suspended in order to give himself fully to the church, along with his romantic love interest at the time, Rennali Sunwhisper who would become Bishop under the Ordinary of See, the Bishop Johannes Moorwhelp, a hill dwarf with more wrinkles on his face than a Gilnean Hound. Tenevus was elevated to the title of 'Master Paladin' or a head of the paladin sect of knights in the Clergy, maintaining knightly training and morality, alongside his fueding partner, Lord Naevius Bellorum. The two clashed over and over about how rightfully to train their knights, leading to countless politicing and sour feelings between the two, especially because Lord Bellorum had blamed Tenevus for his removal from rank of 'Exemplar' despite the fact that it was due to disorderly conduct and actions not becoming a knight. Bellorum's Hiatus With the constant bickering and infighting between the two knights, especially over the love a one Bishop Rennali Sunswhisper, the two were at constant odds, but Tenevus tried his best to remain neutral, knowing that the knights under him were tooking to him as an example of virtue, not drama. This motion cast his trajectory into the Light and he set himself on the righteous path, supplicating fully to the ministrations of the Light and the Church. Disgruntled by the church for daring to remove him from his esteemed rank of 'Exemplar' and the duplicitous romance of the elf he loved with his arch-nemesis, Naevius abandoned the church and set off, unannounced, not only giving Tenevus twice the responsibilty, but the room he needed to allow the knights of the orthodox faith to grow wholly and undisturbed by the backhanded conflicts between the two Master Paladins. Lord Tenevus Stromheart, Exemplar of the Church With Bellorum in self-exile, Tenevus was shunted upon him the duties of not only the Silver Hand Council and all the knights there, but that of the knights under his own fold in the Church. But this would not stop his compassion and tenacity to see that the right and virtuous thing was done. Word from the southern parishes in Stranglethorn let out desperate calls for help as they had been assaulted by trolls, killing many innocent humans and clergymen stationed there. The church decreed that the knights, under command of Tenevus, travel to Arathi to recover a lost weapon of power to combat the trolls, so that it may be reforged with several replicas to equip the knights with an additional means for success in the Vale. Not soon before he left with the knights did he propose to Rennali, asking her to be his life mate and eternal bond in the Light. She did accept, despite his unorthodox and clumsy method of inquiring and after a bit of chasing.To which came to a shock to the returned Naevius Bellorum who had not relinquished his rage towards Tenevus, infact, now ever more fueled with vengeful hate. The knights left and managed to secure the blade pieces scattered by the several factions there and reforged it, taking the replica copies to Stormwind and leaving the original blade with The Caretakers in Stromgarde. A Tumultuous Romance During the Arathian Campaign to secure the blade pieces, it was revealed to both Lord Bellorum and Tenevus that Rennali held relations with both of them. Stromheart stood relatively stern as he knew they were bound by the Light, not saying a word, knowing the divine splendor of the Light would cast aside all biases and assist in the conflict. Rennali ended up chosing to remain faithful to Tenevus, remarking that she was bound by Light and Law. The two were soon wed in secrecy, as to protect them from the demon Hal'desh that had taken an interest on the both of them. Despite Tenevus' high responsibility, he is deeply in love with his wife and would drop the world to be with her. He earnestly wants nothing but to retire from his service and become what he's always wanted to be: A husband -and- a father. The Fall of Naevius Bellorum and the Clash of Virtue Already enraged by the emotional turmoil created from the caustic romance between Rennali, one that had turned to poisonous hate, was only made worse when His Grace, Johannes Moorwhelp appointed Tenevus to Naevius' old position of Exemplar, the paragon of knightly virtue in the eyes of the church. After several painful attempts to rekindle his love for Rennali, Lord Bellorum attempted to take his life before Rennali, Tenevus, and Naevius' daughter, Marelethe Bellorum. Tenevus sacrifice-healed Naevius so he would not die and made the decision to temporarily remove Naevius from the rank of Lord-Militant, as he knew it would be unwise to have such a position filled with a man that did not even respect his -own- life. Upon hearing of this order to remove him from his rank, Lord Bellorum had fallen into a dark place, tracking Tenevus down while he was on a diplomatic mission to gather a few Dark Iron Dwarves into the church in Blackrock Mountain. There the two began an argument that then cause Naevius to initiate a brutal sequence of melee combat that ended in the near removal of Tenevus' hand, forcing him to channel the Light through his arcane-infused appendage, blasting the crazed and vengeful ex-Scarlet Chaplain into the flowing lava at the end of the ramp on which they battled, scarring Bellorum's body entirely, his holy bubble only just barely saving his life. Strom's Might and Strom's Virtue During the battle between Lord Bellorum, Tenevus' mighty, ancient and ancestral war hammer 'Strom's Might' gave way and shattered, leaving only a hovering and magic-covered core, manifesting the Light's power to merely use it as a blade against the aggressive Dark Paladin. After his victory (a shallow one at that) he had his war hammer recovered and reforged into an elementium blade around te former, magical core of his family's war hammer by his dwarven friend and master smith, Hyngvar Ironhide. Wicked Politics and Baron von Falkenburg ((In progress)) Shamed ((In progress)) A Phoenix from the Ashes ((In progress)) Tenevus Stromheart, Grand Master ((In Progress)) The Rise of the Silver Hand Chapter ((In Progress)) The Plague of Man ((In Progress)) The Duke and the Baker's Girl ((In Progress)) : Take this, and live on. Give to the world, continue to strive. You have so much to live for, Tenevus. Bring love to the world...never stop bringing love.